Bottle conveyer



June 30, 1931. M, P, WETMQRE n 1,812,390

BOTTLE CONVEYER Filed Aug. 2. 1928 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 52 To d? Z9 Z2 40 I I Jj 32 o l o o -1 mi( /hv/ Arm/mfr June 30, 1931. M P WE1-MORE 1,812,390

BOTTLE GONVEYER Filed Aug. 2, 1928 .'5 Sheets-Sheet 2 June 30, 1931.

M. P. WETMORE BOTTLE coNvEYER Filed Aug. 2, 192B 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 .H INVENTOR ffm/5R P//Vf/mef BY A JATTQRNEY Patented June 30, 1931 UNITED STATES PTNT OFFICE IVIINER 1. WETMORE, OF NORWICH, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE AMERICAN THERMOS BOTTLE COMPANY, OF NORWICH, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF OHIO BOTTLE CONVEYER Application led August 2, 1928.

My invention relates to the manufacture of double-walled vacuum bottles of glass, and its object is to provide a novel construction of bottle conveyer particularly useful for carrying silvered bottles in inverted position from the drying oven to the evacuating machines.

It is generally known that the doublewalled glass containers or fillers of vacuum bottles are silvered inside the vacuum chamber to improve the heat-insulating properties of the bottle. The silvering process usually involves the precipitation of silver from a solution, and it is necessary that practically all moisture be removed from the silvered chamber. After the spent silvering solution is withdrawn from the bottles, the silvered chambers are thoroughly rinsed with water and the bottles are then passed slowly through a long oven kept at certain temperature. This heating of the silvered bottles accomplishes two purposes: it sets the precipitated silver and dries the silvered chambers. It has lbeen found difficult to remove the last traces of of mo-isture, which interferes with getting a good vacuum in the finished bottle. After leaving the oven, the silvered bottles are transferred to the evacuating machines, which are located at a distance from the oven. For this purpose I have devised a new and iinproved conveyer on which the bottles are supported in inverted position and carried through a heating chamber. By thus keep-- ing the bottles hot as they leave the oven, the moisture-removing process is continued almost to the time when the bottles are connected with a vacuum pump. The conveyer may also be provided with means for automatically counting the bottles that pass a given point.

The accompanying drawings sho-W my new conveyer as actually constructed and successfully operated, but I want it distinctly understood that my invention is not limited to this particular embodiment. Rather is this construction to be regarded as a practical example of my invention selected for detailed description. In these drawings- Fig. l shows one end of the conveyer;

Fig. 2 illustrates the other end of the conveyer;

Serial No. 296,955.

Fig. 3 is a transverse cross-section on line 3-3 of Fig. 2 to show the driving connec` tions for the conveyer chains, which are omitted in this view for clearness;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a portion of the conveyer;

Fig. 5 represents a cross-section on line 5 5 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary detail showing the counting device attached to the conveyer frame, this view being a section on line 6-6 of Fig. 5.

The conveyer is mounted on a suitable frame indicated as a whole by F. At the two ends of the frame are brackets 10 for supporting a pair of shafts 12 and 13. Shaft 12 carries a pair of sprocket wheels 14, and shaft 13 supports a pair of similar sprocket wheels 15. The sprocket Wheels are fixed on their respective shafts by pins 16, or in any other practical Way. Referring to Fig. 3, it will be seen that one end of shaft 13 extends beyond the supporting frame F and carries a gear wheel 17, which is' in mesh with a pinion 18 fixed on a shaft 19 rigidly mounted in a bearing sleeve 20. The shaft 19 carries a worm wheel 21 arranged in mesh with a worm shaft 22, which is mounted in a housing 23 supported on a bracket 24 secured to one side of the supporting frame. The bearing sleeve 20 may be cast integral with the housing, which also encloses the worm gear 21. A pulley or gear wheel 25 on worm shaft 22 is connected by a belt or chain 26 to a pinion 27 on the shaft 28 of a suitable driving motor 29. It is evident that the movements of the motor shaft 28 are transmitted in greatly reduced ratio to the gear 17 of shaft 13 through the connections just described.

The supporting frame F carries at the top a pair of channel bars 30, and at the bottom is a pair of similar channel bars 31. These channel bars constitute tracks for rollers 32 mounted on the ends of cross-bars 33. The upper tracks 30 are supported on lateral brackets 34, and the lower tracks 31 are carried by cross-pieces 35 of frame F. The cross-bars 33 are connected to a pair of link chains 36 in any practical way. In the particular machine shown in the drawings, each bar 33 has attached to its underside a pair of plates or blocks 37 by screws 38, or otherwise, and a chain link is ixed to each block. The cross-bars 33 are spaced a certain distance, as will be seen in Fig. 4. The chains 36 run over the sprocket wheels 14 and 15 at the ends of the supporting frame. Fig. 1 shows the feeding end of the conveyer, and it is assumed that the sprocket wheels 14 rotate clockwise, as indicated by the arroW, to move the upper section of the driving chains from left to right. In the broader aspect of my invention, any suitable driving connections may be used for operating the chains 36 at the desired speed.

The cross-bars 33 are adapted to support bottles 39, lwhich in thisinstance are shown as double-.walled vacuum bottles of glass that have been silvered in the vacuum chamber and are ready for the evacuating machines. Since the cross-bars 33 are of identical construction, a description of one will be sufficient. Each cross-bar. is provided at the center Witlianannular enlargement froming a ring 40, through which the supported bottle extends. The opening of ring 40 is slightly larger than the'inserted bottle. Rods 41 secured to ring 40 carry a second ring 42, which is of smaller diameter than ring 40. The bottom ring 42 is preferably wound with asbestos 43, on which the supported bottle rests in inverted position, as will be clear from Fig. 5, The asbestos cover 43 acts not only as a heat-insulator, but also as a cushion for the glass bottle. To support the bottles on the conveying arms 33, the operator need only insert them through the rings 40 until they engage the cushioned rings 42.

The supporting frame F carries crosspieces 4.4, on which are mounted two sheet metal plates 45, which converge upwardly and form a longitudinal oven or heat chamber 46. The cross-pieces 44 .also support a gas pipe 47 having burner openings 48 closely spaced to provide a substantially continuous gas flame running lengthwise of the heating chamber 46, which is open at the top. As seen in Fig. 5, the lower ends of the inverted bottles 39 project slightly into the heating chamber 46 and are therefore kept at a certain temperature as they pass through the conveyer to a point where they are removed for treatment in the evacuating machines. The heat to which the bottles are subjected while on the conveyerserves to drive out the last traces of moisture in the silvered vacuum chambers, which are .open to the atmosphere through the tubular extensions 49. Furthermore, by keeping the bottles on the conveyer hot, the moisture in the air on a particularly damp day is prevented from entering the vacuum chambers, and the bottles are therefore in a most favorable condition to be evacuated.

In a preferred embodiment of my invention, I provide automatic counting mechanism to register the number of bottles passing a given point on the conveyer. For this purpose I mount a suitable counting device 50 on an upright post or frame 51 attached to one side of the supporting frame F. It will not be necessary to show or describe the detaiis of the counter 50, because these devices are well known in the art and can be brought in the open market. On theprojecting end of the operating shaft,52 of counter 5() is mounted an arm 53 having 4an adjustable eX- tension 54 arranged to be engaged by a bottle. In this instance I have shown the arm 53A in the form -of a sleeve to which the extension 54 is connected by a setescrew 55, but it will he understood'that a simple arm may be used, since the adjustable part 54-is not necessar in ail cases. r.fhe arm .53 has a;

rear extension 56, to which .one end cfa-con-A tracting coil spring 57"' is conne/Cted. The other end of this spring is attachedto a pin 58 projecting from a bracket 59, Ywhich may be a horizontal extension of frame 51. The

spring 57 normally holds ,the extension 56 of.

arm 53 against a shoulder 60 on bracket-,59,

as will be clear from Fig. 4 When a bottle 39 on the conve-yer strikes the free end of arm 53, the latter is rocked through a sufficient angle to actuate the counter 50 oney As the bottle keeps mOviIlgslowlyV point. forward, it passes out ofengageinent with the arm 53, whereupon'A the spring 57` rocks the arm to normal position. This one-way movement of arm, 53 is repeated by each bottle as it passesby, so that-the number of bottles is automatically registered by the counter 50.

In the conveyor illustrated f in thev drawings the rings 40 on cross-,bars I3 -arerlarge enough to receive quartfbottles. When pint bottles are inserted on the conveyer, shown in Figs. 4 and 5, there is considerable clearancefbetween the bottle and the inner edge of the surrounding ring. To hold the smaller bottles against movementA n the ringsl 40, I provide a resilient arm l'arranged to press the bottles laterally toward the countingarmA 53. In this way each bottle is held against movement in ring 40 duringits engagement with arm 53, so that the latter is ,sure to be actuated by each bottle. The arm 6l may simply be a piece of springrwire attached at 62 to a U-sh'aped frame or bracket 63'carried by a post 64, which is attached to one sideo-f the main supporting frame F. The free end of wire 61 carries a lateral pin. or rod 65 arf ranged to slide in a sleeve 66"mounted on bracket 63. The spring wire 61 is thus mounted for sufficient movement to engage the bottles firmly without danger of breaking them by undue pressure.

Although I have shown and described a certain specific construction, I want it understood that my invention is not limited to the details set forth. It is evident that changes and modilications may be made by those skilled in the art Without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claim.

I claim as my invention:

In a bottle conveyer, the combination of a frame having a pair of tracks at the bottom and a pair of tracks atthe top, a plurality of cross-bars provided at the ends With rollers arranged to run over both pairs of tracks, each of said bars having an opening to receive a bottle, a pair of endless chains to which said bars are connected in transversely spaced relation, Wheels at the ends of said frame for driving said chains, means carried by each bar below said opening to support a bottle in substantially vertical position, a pivoted arm supported at one side of said frame and arranged to be actuated by each bottle that passes by on the conveyer, a counting device operated by said arm, and resilient means at the opposite side of said frame for engaging each bottle and holding it firmly against the edge of the opening in the supporting cross-bar when the bottle actuates said counting arm.

MINER P. WETMORE. 

